Ola eyeing Ridlr to improve navigation technology

In a bid to improve its navigation technology and add more services like intracity bus and train bookings on its platform, home-grown cab-aggregator Ola is in talks to acquire transportation app Ridlr, according to a Livemint report.

Citing people in the know of the things, the report says that it will be a distress sale, though the price is still unknown.

Ridlr provides data on bus and train routes and prices in 19 cities and allows users to book tickets for public transportation services besides providing real-time traffic information.

Ola hasn’t been a prolific buyer but is making slow and steady strides to take on arch-rival Uber. In December, 2017, it bought Foodpanda India to re-enter the food delivery business.

The cab-aggregator also recently raised $1.1 billion from investors including Chinese internet giant Tencent and Japan’s SoftBank and said it was in advanced talks to raise another $1 billion from existing and new investors.

Ola, with a presence in 110 cities across India, said it will use the money to invest heavily in artificial intelligence technology and penetrate new areas of the country.